Public Statements

Sequester and Federal Spending

Floor Speech

Mr. BENTIVOLIO. Mr. Speaker, before I came to Washington, I was a high school teacher. To be a good teacher, I had to make things understandable for my students in the classroom. With the budget, I knew that there had to be an easier way to explain the numbers I was looking at to the people who sent me to Washington. Thomas Jefferson once wrote that an informed public was vital to our continuing democracy. I would like to share with you how the sequester affects Federal spending.

Spending is expected to be around $3.8 trillion; that's the number 38 followed by 11 zeros. The sequester is $85 billion; that's the number 85 followed by nine zeros. That's a lot of money.

The best way to understand these numbers is to take eight zeros off of both of them. The President is complaining that we are taking an equivalent of $850 from a budget of $38,000. This is all pretty hypocritical after he forced hardworking Americans who actually have to live on $38,000 a year to pay another $760 or so in increased taxes as part of his fiscal cliff deal.

The people in my district want us to get serious about the enormous spending that's happening here in Congress. We should be able to have a reduction in the increase of spending without acting as it if will cause the end of the world.